What ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said about women’s basketball tournament moving to Atlanta

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — For the first time in 49 years, the Ally ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament is leaving the Carolinas.

Instead, the tournament will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, at Gas South Arena. It is a move that sees the tournament move from its former home of Greensboro, North Carolina, where it was held for 25 of the past 26 seasons. Prior to that, the tournament was held in Conway, South Carolina (2017), Charlotte, North Carolina (1997-1999), Rock Hill, South Carolina (1992-1996) and Fayetteville, North Carolina (1983-1991).

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“We’re trying to grow the game,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said during his Commissioners Forum at the 2025 ACC Tipoff on Tuesday, Oct. 7. “This is about as good of a time since I’ve been in college sports to grow women’s basketball in an exponential manner. We went to an open-bid process, and we allowed everybody within our East Coast footprint to bid. So there were no predetermined outcomes, and at the end of the day the folks in the Greater Atlanta area over at Gas South Arena came up with a proposal that was outstanding.”

The ACC women’s tournament is coming off its highest fan total since 2009, surpassing more than 70,000 fans at last year’s tournament and averaging more than 10,000 per session.

Phillips is hopeful that number will continue to climb in Atlanta.

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“We are excited about the opportunity and possibilities in 2026,” Phillips said.

The 2026 ACC women’s basketball tournament is set for March 4-8.

“All eyes will be watching to see what happens, but I have great anticipation, and I feel very confident from all that I’ve seen and heard and witnessed – I was just down there two weeks ago – that it will be a wonderful tournament as we continue to try to grow the game within our footprint,” Phillips said.

Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@gannett.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Jim Phillips on ACC women’s basketball tournament moving to Atlanta